Latest news with #HSamuel
Daily Mirror
10-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Amazon reduces 'neat' £100 smartwatch 'worth every penny' to £16
Amazon Prime members get over £80 off the smartwatch that 'really impressed' shoppers Amazon Prime Day 2025 ends tomorrow, but plenty of offers are still up for grabs. One standout deal has seen the WeurGhy Smart Watch for Men and Women discounted from £99.99 to £15.19, offering shoppers 85% off the original price. The product description states: "This activity tracker is equipped with high-precision sensors to monitor health data such as heart rate and blood oxygen around the clock. Automatically analyze sleep quality and generate professional reports. Help you fully understand your physical condition and develop healthy living habits." The description adds: "This fitness watch has more than 120 professional sports modes built in, which can accurately record your sports data at any time, including calorie consumption, steps and exercise trajectory." However, one shopper suggested "the functions are limited to what a smartphone can do." That said, reviews are overwhelmingly positive, and happy customers think the discounted watch is "value for money" and "worth every penny." It's not the only smartwatch on offer from Amazon, so customers should shop around and compare deals before making a purchase. There are also deals available from other retailers. For instance, the Reflex Active Series 12 Navy Strap Smart Watch is on sale for £30.99 from £39.99 at Argos. Elsewhere, H Samuel offers the Sekonda Flex Rose Gold Tone Bracelet Smart Watch for £65 from £79.99 and Currys offers the FITBIT Versa 4 Smart Watch for £179. For shoppers who prefer the WeurGhy Smart Watch for Men Women, Amazon's offering has earned high praise. Reviewers gave it an average score of 4.9 out of five. However, it's worth noting there are fewer than 100 global ratings to date, which might be a negative for shoppers who prefer to read a variety of reviews before making a purchase. One of the positive reviews said: "I am really impressed by how neat it looks and the tasks it can do such as heart rate monitor and calls and weather. For £15 it's worth every penny. It's waterproof and means I can read texts off my wrist instead of hunting for my smartphone every time I get a WhatsApp message. Is a good bit of useful, cheap and cheerful tech." Someone else praised: "Great for my child, she is always available and she loves the purple color. Good model if you don't want to spend so much money." A different commenter had mixed thoughts, as they liked the watch but thought it could be improved. They wrote: "Great value for money. Very nice design (I chose the lilac color and it's gorgeous), large and readable display. The main functions such as pedometer, heart rate monitor, sleep monitoring and notifications are very precise. "The battery lasts 5-6 days with regular use. The only flaw is that the compatible apps are limited and a bit basic, but for the price it's a great buy. Perfect for those who want a functional smartwatch without breaking the bank." Another shopper with similar feedback replied: "Absolutely satisfied, the fitness tracker offers everything I need for my running training and works as described. Pairing with Android was problem-free. The functions are limited to what a smartphone can do, but the tracker is much more comfortable to carry."
Daily Mirror
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Shoppers can get jewellery similar to tennis-pro Aryna Sabalenka
With Wimbledon 2025 in full swing, we've spotted a way to copy Aryna Sabalenka's stylish accessory collection on the high street Aryna Sabalenka is through to the Wimbledon 2025 semi-finals, set to face Amanda Anisimova for a place in the final. A world number one tennis player, Aryna has fashion fans turning their heads not only for her exceptional game, but her glittering collection of jewellery. Dazzling spectators, the 27-year-old showcased a number of accessories on the court, including earrings, necklaces and bracelets. Aryna seems to favour layering her jewellery, mixing gold and silver metals with pops of beads, gem stones and colour. Switching things up from a classic tennis bracelet, shoppers can emulate her style with some similar jewellery found at Abbott Lyon, Monica Vinader, H Samuel and more. Plus, members of Amazon Prime can nab some designer pieces for less in the Prime Day sale. Those that are not members can sign up for a free 30-day trial here. Ted Baker's official Amazon store front have discounted a Heart Necklace and Earrings set by half for Amazon Prime Day. The Ted Baker Farah Faceted Stone Heart Necklace was £75 but is now £37.50, alongside the matching earrings that are now £17.50. Sharing a similar turquoise colour to Aryna's collection, shoppers say they are able to 'sleep and shower in them with no problems at all' and the 'blue stone is unique and offsets against the gold well'. Another option can be found at Abbott Lyon - the Green Quartz Heart Necklace is £69 , the matching Huggie Earrings are £59 and the Bracelet is £89. Calling them 'absolutely beautiful' shoppers say they get 'lots of compliments when wearing' them. It is also important to note they are waterproof, which means no tarnishing or green staining and the earrings are 'not too heavy' - ideal for those that also plan to wear them while playing sports. Aryna can be seen wearing a green gem choker-style necklace and we've found a similar buy at Monica Vinader. It is an investment piece priced at £498, but the tennis necklace is made from 18K gold vermeil and green onyx it should last a lifetime, even when worn everyday. For a cheaper alternative, consider this Sterling Silver and 18ct Gold Plated Vermeil Green Chain Necklace on sale at H Samuel. Originally £79.99, it is now £49.99 with one customer saying 'I bought these for my bridesmaids and it's an amazing product'. This necklace does only come in one size, which may be problematic to some, however the Monica Vinader necklace is adjustable.
Daily Record
09-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
'Elegant' Debenhams watch that 'commands compliments' drops to £111 after 88% cut
"Simple, slim design on the outside with the beautiful and amazing complexity visible as a skeleton on the inside." As the weather is set to take a warmer turn this weekend, many people are quickly trying to organise get-togethers with their friends and family. Whether meeting up at a beer garden, high-end restaurant, or just in the garden, you will want to make sure you look your best. One easy way to elevate an outfit is to wear a stylish watch. While practical in its function for keeping accurate time, luxury watches also boast their own style and elegance that is sure to capture the eye. For those who don't want to break the bank on their newest watch, Debenhams is hosting a massive sale. For those looking for something that is sophisticated and unique in its design, Debenhams has dropped the price of the STÜHRLING Original Atrium 3942M Automatic Wrist Watch. Normally retailing for £900, shoppers can now snap it up for £111.75 in the sale. Described as exuding high-end style and sophistication, this Atrium watch features an automatic movement that will ensure reliability no matter the occasion. However, what makes this watch stand out is its unique dial and caseback. Featuring an intricate guilloche outer dial, which boasts striking Roman Numeral hour markers, the inner section of the dial features a skeleton design that allows wearers to see the inner workings of the dial. STÜHRLING Original Atrium 3942M Automatic Wrist watch £900 £111.75 Debenhams Buy Now Product Description To add another unique twist to the watch, shoppers can also view the workings of the watch through the exhibition caseback. The timepiece is finished off with a mesh bracelet that adds a touch of refinement. Debenhams claims that this watch is the perfect accessory for anyone who wants to make a statement. Shoppers have a variety of colourways to choose from, including an all-black, silver or rose gold design. Another watch in the Debenhams sale is the STÜHRLING Original Men's Tempo Chronograph Watch. Usually retailing for £570, shoppers can now snatch it up for £89.25. Available in four colourways, this timepiece boasts a silicone strap and is said to be the "silent partner to your daily rhythm". Alternatively, shoppers can head to H Samuel and buy the Bulova Classic Chronograph Men's Stainless Steel Bracelet Watch. Normally priced at £259, shoppers can now buy the timepiece for £129 in the sale. However, this can currently be reduced down further by using the code SALE10 at checkout - dropping the price to £116.10. Now while the Atrium Watch currently doesn't have any reviews on Debenhams, many delighted shoppers shared their views on the watch over on the Stuhrling website. One happy shopper said: "Classic beauty and styling with the ease of automatic/mechanical movement. LOVE the mesh band as it truly customises the fit perfectly. I love wearing my Stuhrlings, showing them off, getting compliments and talking up the brand." Fashion deal of the week New Balance has just launched a massive sale ahead of the summer, with up to half-price off. For those who don't want their feet to get sore during the day, the Women's 327 Shoes have earned a glowing reputation from thousands of shoppers, with praise suggesting they are "like walking on clouds." Usually retailing at £100, these lace-up trainers are now available to purchase for just £60, saving 40 percent and £40 off the RRP. Initially designed as running shoes that have been inspired by the 1970's, the New Balance 327 boasts an angular reworking of the classic wedge silhouette and an adjustable lace-closure design for a customized fit. The wraparound, trail-inspired lug outsole makes these trainers a supportive choice for those on their feet all day, whether that be during physical exercise or when out on city breaks during the summer. As of writing, the 40 percent discount covers three colours - slate grey, bone and raincloud - with sizes ranging from three to eight, including half-sizes, although some are being snapped up fast. They currently boast a 4.6 rating based on over 3,000 reviews, as one thrilled customer wrote: "Not only do these look good, they're the comfiest trainers I've ever worn! Walked around London for 2 days & I felt like I was walking on clouds!" A second positive review read: "Walking on Air! They are the most comfortable shoe I've ever had. I've tossed out all my On Cloud's, Nike's & Hoka's. I plan on buying another air for the summer." Shop the 40 percent discount on the New Balance Women's 327 Shoes online now. With another five-star reviewer adding: "Bought this watch, very precise and elegant. It has style and personality. Kind of steampunk aspect, nice and smooth surfaces, in contrast with the robust construction. I accidentally dropped it on concrete pavement, no scratch, no damage. I'm glad about the purchase. Strongly recommend!" However, one shopper wasn't pleased with the colourway they purchased. They wrote: "Great size, good quality. The hands of the watch are not as bright a blue as the pictures suggest. The lack of contrast makes it harder to read. Not bad for the price though." And another shopper didn't have an great experience in terms of delivery: "New watch bought was as described but the delivery time was disappointing." Despite this, a different shopper complimented: "Beautiful watch that commands compliments. Simple, slim design on the outside with the beautiful and amazing complexity visible as a skeleton on the inside. "Stuhrling truly never disappoints!!! Absolutely LOVE their skeleton watches to wear and to gift to others!" While a top reviewer also commented: "Purchased this in the sale. It's a beautiful piece of workmanship. The strap is very large so should fit all." To buy the STÜHRLING Original Atrium 3942M Automatic Wrist Watch, click HERE. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
Daily Mail
28-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE The 'stupid' joke that cost me £500MILLION: How 'King of the high street' lost his home, his company and almost his sanity with the quip his jewellery was 'total crap' - and he still regrets it today
Once hailed as the undisputed king of the British high street, Gerald Ratner was a jeweller with the Midas touch – until a single offhand quip turned his glittering empire to dust. At his peak in the late 1980s, Ratner was earning £750,000 a year, jetting between his riverside home in Bray, Berks and a Mayfair mansion in a private helicopter, and overseeing a retail empire that controlled half the UK's jewellery market. His company, Ratners Group, was the biggest jewellery retailer on earth, owning H. Samuel, Ernest Jones, Leslie Davis and even Watches of Switzerland. In the US alone, he had over a thousand stores. And yet, it all came crashing down in a matter of days after that infamous speech at the Royal Albert Hall in April 1991. It was meant to be a bit of harmless banter to liven up the Institute of Directors' annual convention. 'We do cut-glass sherry decanters complete with six glasses on a silver-plated tray that your butler can serve you drinks on, all for £4.95,' he said, gearing up for the hilarious punchline. 'People say, 'How can you sell this for such a low price?'. I say, 'Because it's total crap'. 'An M&S prawn sandwich would last longer than most of the earrings the company sold,' he added, in case they hadn't got the message. In a Britain battered by recession and looking for scapegoats, the nation – and the media - pounced. The name Ratner suddenly became corporate blasphemy. Overnight, the man who had built a billion-pound brand became a pariah in the City that had once loved him. More than 34 years on, you might think that a man whose name has become a byword for a catastrophic b****up with the coining of the term, the 'Ratner effect', would tire of being constantly reminded of it. But the reverse is true, as the affable Ratner, now a spritely 75-year-old who cycles 25 miles a day, told MailOnline in an exclusive interview this week. 'I do motivational speeches about once a week,' he said. 'I'm off to Solihull on Saturday. It's quite cathartic, to be honest. 'I'm infamous for messing up, but the fact is that I've come back and made a success of my life again, so people tell me they find it inspirational, because whatever disaster has befallen them or their business, the chances are it won't compare to supposedly losing £500million, so it cheers them up.' And now, according to a recent report by the Mail on Sunday, Ratner could be on the verge of buying back high street jewellers H Samuel and Ernest Jones from its American owner Signet, but he told us it's not something he can discuss right now. It's all a far cry from his early years. Gerald was expelled from school aged 16 for telling the headmaster at a colleague's funeral that he might as well stay at the crematorium. He joined the family business aged 21 as a shop assistant. His father, having battled illness, passed the reins to Gerald in 1984, as Ratners struggled with £34,000 in losses and a looming takeover threat from H. Samuel. Ratner executed a classic boardroom coup – manipulating both his father and uncles, none of whom spoke to one another, into stepping aside. At just 34, he took control. His genius was to recognise what few others had: the public didn't want expensive heirlooms – they wanted affordable, fashionable sparkle. He ripped the doors off the shops, blasted pop music through the aisles, and put flashy gold chains and earrings at the front, where once had sat velvet-ringed solitaire diamonds. It worked. By the end of the 1980s, Ratners was raking in £1.2bn in turnover a year. Ratner acquired his rivals and revolutionised a dusty industry into a retail juggernaut. 'At one point, we were taking more money than any other retailer in Europe,' he boasts. Then came the spectacular crash. However much he and others might joke about his downfall these days, there was little to laugh at for him at the time. Customers boycotted the stores. The company shuttered over 100 branches and laid off swathes of staff. In a desperate bid to shield the firm, Ratner hired a chairman to distance himself from the brand. It didn't work. He was fired from his own company 18 months later. As well as being forced out of the business he and his family had created, he faced a £1m Capital Gains Tax bill for having received share options on shares which were now worthless, having collapsed virtually overnight from £4.20 to just 2p. 'I basically did nothing for seven years,' he recalled. 'I was on anti-depressants, and I'd still be in bed when Countdown came on the telly in the afternoon.' For years, Ratner drifted aimlessly, but it was exercise that got him going again, in the shape of cycling, after buying a carbon-fibre bicycle. Then, around the same time, he decided to monetise his own fitness hobby and spotted a disused building in Henley, placing an ad in the Henley Advertiseroffering to waive the joining fee for early sign-ups to his gym – which didn't actually exist – or belong to him. Over 800 people registered with direct debits. Ratner marched into his bank, armed with the documents as part of his business plan, and secured a loan to buy the site. Three years later, he sold the business for almost £4 million. Not only was he back, he'd also realised that infamy could be as valuable a commodity as fame, and launched GeraldOnline, an internet jewellery business that cheekily traded on his name and reputation. 'I used my notoriety to get free publicity,' he admits. At its peak, Gerald was taking in £25 million a year. Nowadays Ratner and his wife Moira live in a modest but comfortable £1m semi in the commuter town of Wargrave near Reading. As he told the Telegraph recently: 'I read that Bill Gates has 47 bathrooms,' he shrugs. 'You don't need 47 bathrooms. I've been there and done that. It doesn't bring happiness.' He says he's happier with his life than he ever was before. 'I appreciate the little things more – of course you only do that after you've lost them.' In a world where corporate missteps are ruthlessly seized upon, and people are 'cancelled' at the drop of a tweet, Ratner's Riches-to-Rags-to-Riches story serves as both cautionary tale and comeback legend. He may have once labelled his products 'crap,' but there's nothing cheap about the grit and resilience that saw him turn a national humiliation into a second act few would have dared attempt. As he said himself: 'This is part of my motivational speaking thing - If I'd been a politician, I'd have been consigned to history. But in business, if you're honest about your mistakes – and you learn – there's always a way back.'
Daily Mail
31-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Ex-jewellery tycoon Gerald Ratner plotting bid to buy back old firm despite calling its products 'total c**p'
Gerald Ratner is plotting a dramatic comeback at the jewellery business he quit after calling one of its products 'total c**p'. Mr Ratner, 75, is in talks to buy back the H Samuel and Ernest Jones brands he ran till he stepped down three decades ago after his much-publicised putdown. The brands have flagged under American owner Signet, opening a door for a remarkable return for Mr Ratner to the top of the industry after one of the most notorious faux pas in corporate history. He built his family business Ratner Group into an empire of bling in the 1980s. At its peak, Ratners was the UK's largest jewellery chain with 2,500 stores, including 1,000 in the US, and a turnover of nearly £200 million a year. But Mr Ratner's humour became his undoing in April 1991 when he told a conference of the Institute of Directors at the Albert Hall that a product was 'total c**p'. 'We do cut-glass sherry decanters complete with six glasses on a silver-plated tray that your butler can serve you drinks on, all for £4.95,' he said, gearing up for his punchline. 'People say, "How can you sell this for such a low price?". I say, "Because it's total crap". 'An M&S prawn sandwich would last longer than most of the earrings the company sold,' he added. Mr Ratner later apologised, saying newspapers misinterpreted his speech. But the fallout led to a plunge in sales and £500 million being wiped off the value of the business almost overnight. Mr Ratner said he slid into depression and was unable to get out of bed for years. The episode achieved legendary status among businesspeople, with 'doing a Ratner' referring to executive gaffes. He recovered after taking up cycling and returned to the business world in 1996 when he started a health club which he sold for £4million in 2001. He also built a career on the after-dinner speaking circuit, charging up to £6,000 a gig. Mr Ratner, backed by investors including British banks, wants to be chairman if a deal succeeds. A price for the business has yet to be agreed and there is no guarantee a deal will be done, sources added. Signet, listed on the New York Stock Exchange, had a 6.5 per cent drop in revenue for the year to February, while profit slumped to $111million from $622 million the previous year. It did not respond to requests for comment.
